Several media outlets in China have highlighted the performance of cryptocurrencies throughout the year
While the government of China continues to classify Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as illegal, a number of state-owned media outlets were seen releasing reports that described them as the best-performing assets since the start of the year.
Yesterday, the state-owned Xinhua News Agency cited a report by Bloomberg entitled Crypto is Beating Gold as 2020’s Top Asset So Far. The media outlet provided a summary of Bloomberg’s article and added that cryptocurrencies are “decentralised financial instruments, concluding that they have risen to become “the best performing asset class this year”.
The China Central Television (CCTV) one of the most popular broadcasting services in the country, also released coverage on digital assets. In a video clip, the media outlet discussed the status of cryptocurrencies and highlighted their year-to-date performance. The clip also focused on the 70% price increase that occurred this year.
A high profile commentator on cryptocurrencies, Dovey Wan, observed that coverage on cryptocurrencies spread out among other outlets. It was featured on “all avenues, newspapers, online media, and TV,” and all the advertised narratives followed the same idea: that in the past year, digital assets have outperformed all other investment instruments.
The CEO of Binance, Changpeng Zhao, responded to Wan’s tweet on the matter. He stated that while people may not fully understand the significance behind such coverage in Chinese state media, its impact “is big”.
Wan’s observations have sparked speculations behind the real intention behind such a widespread effort, particularly in a country where cryptocurrencies remain banned for official use. She speculates that it may have something to do with the central bank digital currency (CBDC) that is undergoing testing.
Historically, news and announcements from China have made an impact on prices. Many expect that the two-day media coverage dedicated to the promotion of cryptocurrencies as the best-performing assets in 2020 has made an impact on the market.
In late 2019, the President of China, Xi Jinping, urged the country to accelerate blockchain adoption. The next few hours after his announcement led to one of the most impressive price pumps that the cryptocurrency field has ever experienced. The price of Bitcoin (BTC) alone skyrocketed by 42% in mere hours.
A few weeks later, government officials issued a clarification, explaining that their positive stance on blockchain did not necessarily mean that they had the same positive stance on cryptocurrencies. After they affirmed that digital assets would still remain illegal in the country, the value of cryptocurrencies plummeted in response.